Should I Upgrade to the V800?

[Kumachrome]

Hi, been using the Epson V600 for a while now and it's been working fine for me, but after seeing a few comparisons of the V600 vs the V800, I'm now considering replacing the my current V600.

Any thoughts? It's quite a big jump in price. But I'm not sure if the additional image quality is worth it. I've noticed that close up, the V800 is quite superior, but at normal crop, the images are only slightly better. I tend not to do too much cropping on my photos anyway.
What do you all think? Is the upgrade worth it? Does the V800 expose your negs better?

 

[DHK]

If it was me it’d have to be because it does more (MF, LF). I’ve been thinking about one too but think of all the film you could get for that price.

 

[narsuitus]

You should also consider the Epson V850 scanner.

 

[Michael Markey]

I`ve just upgraded from the V600 to the V850 and am embarking on reviewing and re scanning all my negs.

About a third of the way through at present and I must say that the V850 has been worth the expenditure.

 

[froyd]

Michael, Would you be able to post (maybe using an outside site for max resolution) scans of the same negative from the two machines. I think many would be interested in the direct comparison.

 

[SaveKodak]

I would either try to find a clean used V700 (same optics as V850 just slower), or *really* upgrade. A true upgrade would be something like the Pacific Image PF120 (AKA Reflecta). Some have also had success with the Plustek as well, though mine was defective so I swapped it for the PF120.

Flatbeds are almost always going to let you down with roll film. UNless you want to get deep into wet scanning formats like 6x6+, the quality will never reach dedicated scanner levels. At least with a used V700 you won't spend much, and the quality will be the same.

Or use a lab like Northeast Photographic.

 

[xvvvz]

>>I would either try to find a clean used V700 (same optics...) or *really* upgrade.<<

+1 . You can often find them reasonably priced on Craigslist and similar. Make sure to open it up and clean off the inevitable outgassing/fogging that will have built up by now. I would skip the Pacific Image and go for a used really high end flatbed or a drum scanner if I was going to invest a lot more money in a scanner. Those are often going for relatively low investment these days.

Doug

 

[Michael Markey]

Michael, Would you be able to post (maybe using an outside site for max resolution) scans of the same negative from the two machines. I think many would be interested in the direct comparison.

`fraid not the other machine had stopped working .
There is provision with the 850 to do wet scanning but I`m more than happy with the results I`m getting so far.

 

[taemo]

I would either try to find a clean used V700 (same optics as V850 just slower), or *really* upgrade. A true upgrade would be something like the Pacific Image PF120 (AKA Reflecta). Some have also had success with the Plustek as well, though mine was defective so I swapped it for the PF120.

I agree on this as well, the V700 may be slower but it can actually scan more (4 strips of 35mm and 2 strips of 120 on the V7XX vs 3 strips of 35mm and 1 strip on 120 on the V8XX).

I was able to snag a V700 last week with the intention of using it for quick scans, then use DSLR scanning when needing higher resolution.

 

[ptpdprinter]

Hi, been using the Epson V600 for a while now and it's been working fine for me, but after seeing a few comparisons of the V600 vs the V800, I'm now considering replacing the my current V600.

Any thoughts? It's quite a big jump in price. But I'm not sure if the additional image quality is worth it. I've noticed that close up, the V800 is quite superior, but at normal crop, the images are only slightly better. I tend not to do too much cropping on my photos anyway.
What do you all think? Is the upgrade worth it? Does the V800 expose your negs better?

What size negatives are you scanning?

 

[bayernfan]

i like the v800/850 film holders a lot more than the 700.

 

[SaveKodak]

>>I would either try to find a clean used V700 (same optics...) or *really* upgrade.<<

+1 . You can often find them reasonably priced on Craigslist and similar. Make sure to open it up and clean off the inevitable outgassing/fogging that will have built up by now. I would skip the Pacific Image and go for a used really high end flatbed or a drum scanner if I was going to invest a lot more money in a scanner. Those are often going for relatively low investment these days.

Doug

Drum scanners have a lot of cultural caché but you'd be surprised how often the output from a dedicated 120 scanner is just fine. Operating a drum scanner these days is like being a VERY serious hobbyist. They're large, you have to run old computers and or software, you have to wet mount every scan you make, you have to source parts if anything goes wrong. It's a big investment of time and mental energy for an incremental increase in quality. Imacon 848s are still in the $6-8k range. Even a Coolscan 9000 is over priced at $3k. I've done a lot of scanning on the 9000 and my current PF120, and despite a slight reduction in pixel resolution (4000 to 3200ppi), the PF120 matches the Coolscan output. Plus the guy at Scan Science made me a wet scanning mount, which has been great. Even the Imacons only manage 3200ppi when it comes to 120 films. Plus when you make an excellent scan and print you generally don't have people lording it over you that it didn't come from a drum scanner, that kind of thing only happens on forums. 😀

 

[teddy]

Even the Imacons only manage 3200ppi when it comes to 120 films. Plus when you make an excellent scan and print you generally don't have people lording it over you that it didn't come from a drum scanner, that kind of thing only happens on forums. 😀

I agree on this very much. There's too much pixel peeping going on and then I tend to forget about the real thing - photography itself. I use an EPSON 4990 that used to belong to a friend. Scans are great. I would like to try a Reflekta though.

 

[Pelle-48]

Hi, been using the Epson V600 for a while now and it's been working fine for me, but after seeing a few comparisons of the V600 vs the V800, I'm now considering replacing the my current V600.

Any thoughts? It's quite a big jump in price. But I'm not sure if the additional image quality is worth it. I've noticed that close up, the V800 is quite superior, but at normal crop, the images are only slightly better. I tend not to do too much cropping on my photos anyway.
What do you all think? Is the upgrade worth it? Does the V800 expose your negs better?

V800 is much better than V600 regarding resolution:
[URL="http://www.filmscanner.info/en/FilmscannerTestberichte.html[/URL]